By Brian Heinemann
For The Herald
With 10 starters back from the Big Ten’s most explosive and productive offense of 2009, the 2010 version of the Wisconsin Badgers figures to be scary good.
Will it be enough to get them through a mid-October schedule that includes back-to-back games with conference favorites Iowa and Ohio State, though? Probably not, unless the defense recovers from a disappointing 2009 campaign.
“We expect to be the most physical team on the field every Saturday,” senior safety Jay Valai said. “I think we’re more hungry than we’ve ever been. We have a lot of guys who’ve been one-year players who are just ready to go for the second bout. I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people on defense.”
They’ll need to if they want to finish above No. 3 in the conference. While they topped the Big Ten in rush defense last year, three of the front four are gone this year. That won’t help the pass defense, which gave up 21 touchdown passes a year ago and struggled to a middle-of-the-conference ranking.
They’ll need to if they want to finish above No. 3 in the conference. While they topped the Big Ten in rush defense last year, three of the front four are gone this year. That won’t help the pass defense, which gave up 21 touchdown passes a year ago and struggled to a middle-of-the-conference ranking.
With the offense the Badgers have, one has to wonder if it will really matter if the defense struggles a bit. The Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year from 2009, running back John Clay, returns for his junior year. Clay led the league in rushing last year and ran for 18 touchdowns, numbers that he could easily improve upon with the entire offensive line returning.
The guy handing him the ball isn’t too bad, himself. Scott Tolzien, now a senior, is one of the top quarterbacks in the conference, and he learned some valuable lessons from last year.
“I do believe one of the things that he really struggled with a year ago he was so successful in high school, academically and athletically, he never had experienced failure,” Coach Brett Bielema said. “ He never experienced anything that kind of was a bump in the road. When we had a couple of those it really took him back. And he's really done a good job of observing.
“I thought the best quote I saw him from out of season was somebody asked him about what he learned during the winter film studies, and he said: I'm just finally happy that the guy on film is me.”
Wisconsin Badgers
Last year: 10-5, 5-3 Big Ten (tied for fourth)
Lettermen returning/lost: 46 returning, 20 lost.
Starters returning/lost: Offense 10/1, defense 6/5, kickers 2/0.
Key returning starters: Scott Tolzien, QB, Sr.; John Clay, TB, Jr.; J.J. Watt, DE, Jr.
Others to watch: Mike Taylor, OLB, So. (led team in tackles before ACL injury last year); Gabe Carimi, LT, Sr.; Devin Smith, CB, Jr.
By the numbers: 10 - straight opponents to fail to rush for 100 yards against Wisconsin. 28 - points separating Wisconsin from Ohio State and Iowa last year. 6 - teams that averaged 200 yards rushing and passing last year; Wisconsin was one of them.
Schedule: The only potential challenge in the first month is a Sept. 18 date with Arizona State. Big Ten play begins at Michigan State on Oct. 2, with the key stretch being in the second half of October, as the Badgers host Ohio State Oct. 16 and travel to Iowa Oct. 23. The four November games will see Wisconsin favored, at Purdue and Michigan and home
against Indiana and Northwestern.
Reason for optimism: Offensive continuity and balance. The Badgers return all but their tight end, and should be a powerhouse offensively with one of the best QBs in the Big Ten, Tolzien, and one of the best RBs in the nation, Clay. Clay had offseason surgery to remove bone spurs and bone fragments from his ankles, meaning he’s liable to be even more explosive.
Reason for pessimism: The defense and the October schedule. Wisconsin’s defense loses three of its front four, and the secondary gave up a ton of touchdowns through the air last year. With the defensive experience, the mid-October back-to-back with Ohio State and Iowa could be killer.
Bottom line: This is a legitimate Big Ten contender, with one of the best offenses in the country and a schedule that should see them favored in 10 of 12. The Badgers have the ability to knock off Ohio State or Iowa, but the defense will likely prevent them from doing so.
Tomorrow – No. 1 and No. 2 revealed: Do the Hawkeyes have enough to unseat Ohio State?
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